Cyborg Kuro-chan
is a Japanese kodomo manga created by Naoki Yokouchi, serialized in Kodansha's Comic BonBon magazine. Eleven volumes of the manga were released between 1998 and 2002. The manga was adapted into an anime produced by Studio Bogey for TV Tokyo from October 1999 to January 200. The manga and anime have been exported to several countries in Asia, Europe, and Africa. Merchandise based on the manga and anime were made with two additional volumes, entitled Cyborg Kuro-chan: Extra Battle, were published. Reviews for the series note the simplistic and cartoonish art style, and a thin storyline which is mainly centred on gags and comedic violence. Plot Kuro is a normal housecat for an old couple who defends his owners from frequent danger from burglars. But secretly, he is in love with the neighborhood dog, Pooly, and he sets out to confess this one day. While heading to see her, he and Pooly are ambushed by the mad scientist, Dr. Go. Kuro was injured, abducted, and taken to the doctor's lab where he was remodified into a powerful cyborg for world domination. Now more than the average cat on hind legs with can speak human language, Kuro somehow breaks free from his control chip, destroys and escapes Go's laboratory and return home, only to find out Pooly and his owners moved away after the ambush. Moving on and coming to terms with his predicament, Kuro continues his lifestyle as an average housecat while maintaining his cyborg identity from his owners. Meanwhile, Go sets out revenge against Kuro for his betrayal. Together with his Nyan-Nyan Army and his #1 soldier Mi, Go continuously plots to destroy him until their eventual surrender and decide to live a more peaceful life. Thus Kuro's destructive misadventures continue as he saves his owners and the city from trouble and multiple adversaries. Throughout the course of the series, there are phantasmal and extraordinary predicaments that Kuro and his friends must solve. Publishing CKc_Volume_1_(New).jpg CKc Volume 2 (New).jpg CKc Volume 3 (New).jpg Reception Christian Hess, writing for the German site Animepro, noted the "thin storyline" of the manga.http://www.animepro.de/datenbank/cyborg-kuro-chan.htm Malindy Hetfield, writing for Splashcomics, felt that the artwork was closer to a child's drawing style than a manga style.http://www.splashcomics.de/php/rezensionen/rezension/1950 She felt the parodies in the second volume were very funny, cautioning that one needed to become accustomed to the drawing style,http://www.splashcomics.de/php/rezensionen/rezension/1951 and summed up the third volume as "You want hearty humour, wacky drawings, absolutely crazy characters and the greatest orgy of destruction that can be accommodated in 170 pages? Well then, let's go and buy!"http://www.splashcomics.de/php/rezensionen/rezension/1952 Nicholas Demay compared the series with Samurai Pizza Cats, and described the drawing style as cartoonish,http://www.planetebd.com/BD/manga-cyborg-kurochan-4005.html feeling that it supported the surreal tone of the manga,http://www.planetebd.com/BD/manga-cyborg-kurochan-4006.html by reminding the reader that despite the "explosive ambience" that this is a humorous series,http://www.planetebd.com/BD/manga-cyborg-kurochan-4022.html intended for children.http://www.planetebd.com/BD/manga-cyborg-kurochan-4007.html He felt that by the fourth volume, it was clear that Yokouchi intended to use simple characterisations (especially in Dr. Go's case), but felt that this was effective and heightened the contrast between the cuteness of the series and its depictions of mass destruction.http://www.planetebd.com/BD/manga-cyborg-kurochan-4008.html Demay felt that the fifth volume (the Isekai arc), was a chance for Yokouchi to renew himself and to have a change of scenery, and noted that the backgrounds in this sequence are more detailed than usual.http://www.planetebd.com/BD/manga-cyborg-kurochan-4021.html He felt that the story of Kuro-chan and Nana's true relationship was "cute and funny".http://www.planetebd.com/BD/manga-cyborg-kurochan-4024.html The reviewer for Manga-News felt that the parodies of the early volumes quickly ran thin and that the author's attempt to revive the series by adding in multiple characters left the reviewer confused. He felt that the later volumes' turn into emotional scenes and tragedy did not suit the series. He noted the Die Hard parody in the second volume and felt that the references to Japanese culture in this volume were not adequately explained by Pika in the appendix. Despite this, he felt that it was accessible to a wide audience as most of the gags were visual gags. He described Kuro-chan as "a cross between Astroboy and Felix the Cat on acid", and felt that the translation sometimes altered jokes when they were clear in the original, for example, removing a reference to Pikachu. The reviewer for Manga-News noted that although the fifth volume concerned a more serious initial scenario and could be read independently of the others, the storyline was more of the same silly humor and exaggerated violence. He felt that in the sixth volume, a "naive sentimentalism" clashed with the general ambience of the series. In the seventh volume, the clash between Suzuki's students and Kuro in the junkyard, which the reviewer for Manga-News describes as inappropriate. In the ninth volume, the reviewer for Manga News felt that Chieko and Goro steal the stage from the main characters, leaving the tenth volume was unfocused. External Links References Category:Browse